Avicularia sp. 'Metallica' M6 (Metallic Pink Toe Tarantula)

Avicularia sp. 'Metallica' M6 (Metallic Pink Toe Tarantula)

The Metallic Pink Toe Tarantula, or Avicularia sp. 'Metallica' M6, is an arboreal tarantula from South America, most likely across a wide range through Guyana and Brazil. Adults have blue legs, a blue carapace (head), and a lightly reddish abdomen, with white tipped hairs over the body that give the blue its metallic finish and are where the Metallica name comes from. There is far less red here than on a traditional pink toe, so the animal comes across mostly blue, white and black, and it grows to about 6 inches in diagonal leg span. Females live about 10 to 12 years, with males maturing faster and typically living only 2 to 3 years. This species is also docile and easygoing, one of the more approachable arboreals in the hobby, and a strong pick for a keeper who wants blue without an old world temperament. This new world tarantula for sale makes an excellent addition to a captive collection, offered here as a spiderling.

Why do hobbyists keep Avicularia sp. 'Metallica' M6?

• Stunning Coloration: Blue legs and carapace with white tipped hairs across the body for a metallic finish, over an abdomen that only carries a light touch of red. Mostly blue, white and black, which is not how a traditional pink toe reads.
• Colorful Spiderlings: The blue is already there on young animals at a lower intensity, and it deepens with every molt rather than arriving all at once.
• Heavy Webber: Tubes off high on cork bark and keeps adding to it, so a tall enclosure fills in properly.
• Docile Temperament: Easygoing and approachable for an arboreal, which is a large part of why keepers reach for a pink toe when they want blue.
• Hobby Favorite: Blue is what most keepers are chasing, and the metallic pinktoe tarantula has been around long enough to have a real following. Ask for a metallic tarantula at a show and this is often what comes up.

How should Metallic Pink Toe Tarantula be kept?

• Adult Size: Metallic Pink Toe Tarantula spiderlings hatch around 0.5 to 0.75 inch and grow to about 6 inches in diagonal leg span as full adults, so every size below is sized ahead of where that animal is today.
• Enclosure and Rehousing: Sized in three stages as this species grows toward its adult max, from a first enclosure through two rehouses. See the size you're considering below for the exact dimensions at that stage.
• Setup Tips: Real cork bark or a real piece of wood in the enclosure is not just decoration, it is one of the most important pieces of this setup. It gives the animal somewhere real to grip and start laying web right away, and with this genus in particular, that first piece of bark makes a drastic difference in how quickly a new arrival settles in and starts webbing. We have seen a real increase in early survival success tied directly to a bark based setup versus a bare enclosure, so this is one detail worth getting right from day one.
• Temperature: 75 to 85°F, the optimal range for most tropical species like this one. Cooler temperatures are survivable, but increase the odds of trouble molting and growing, so we recommend staying in this range for the best results. Most keepers do not need any extra heating to hit it.
• Humidity: Moderate to high, with the substrate kept lightly moist rather than wet, and strong cross ventilation. Airflow matters more here than maximizing humidity, so skip a fully screened top, which dries an enclosure out too fast.
• Water: A shallow water dish is enough, and placing it up on a piece of cork rather than on the floor is more natural for an arboreal and keeps crickets from drowning in it before they get eaten. Add a light misting of the enclosure once a week to help keep humidity in range.
• Diet: Prey size scales with the animal, from pinhead sized feeders on the smallest spiderlings up to larger prey as it grows. See the size you're considering below for the exact prey measurement at that stage.
• Temperament: Docile but fast, quicker to bolt for its retreat than to stand its ground, and capable of jumping when startled. This genus is genuinely easy once one thing is right: keep the air moving with real cross ventilation, keep the substrate lightly moist rather than wet, and give it real cork bark from the sling stage.

Which size should I choose?

• 0.75-1" Spiderling: the lowest cost way in, and the one that lets you watch its entire growth and color change happen under your own care from the very start.
• 1.25-1.5" Juvenile: a step further along with some of the earliest growth already behind it, for anyone who wants a little less waiting before the size and color really start to show.

Pick the size you want above. Each size still has its own care guidance suited to exactly where that animal is today, not a generic version stretched across every size.

Are there any additional notes or considerations?

• Pink Toe Spiders?: You will sometimes see these called pink toe spiders online. Tarantulas are arachnids, not spiders, and definitely not true spiders, the kind most people picture when they hear the word spider. This is one of the heavy bodied, hairy, long lived tarantulas that gets lumped in with that name anyway. If you searched for a pink toe spider and landed here, you are in exactly the right place.

Looking for similar species?

• Browse our Arboreal Tarantulas and New World Tarantulas collections to explore related care profiles.